Long thong safety ski binding having improved turntable means



June 1967 M. H. CUBBERLEY SAFETY SKI BINDING VHAVING IMPROVED TURNTABLEMEANS LONG THONG 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 17, 1964 INVENTOR; Mrs/m2;fl (249551915X x. mm Q mm um \h \w June 20, 1967 M. H. CUBBERLEY3,325,565

LONG THONG SAFETY SKI BINDING HAVING IMPROVED TURNTABLE MEANS Filed July17, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 0 \F I IIIIIIIIAYIIIIIIIIIIQ 35 Z9 70 62-53 5466 A9 70 Z4 T1 -5- m, C "Us INVENTOR. Maw/11 A7 6' 0855/?15) ATTO EYS.

United States Patent 3,326,565 LONG THONG SAFETY SKI BINDING HAVINGIMPROVED TURNTABLE MEANS Mitchell H. Cubberley, 121 Bell St.,Belleville, NJ. 07109 Filed July 17, 1964, Ser. No. 383,283 4 Claims.(Cl. 28011.35)

This invention relates to a binding for attaching the heel of a skiersboot to a ski, and more particularly, to a binding of this typeincluding an improved turntable adapted to permit pivotal movement ofthe skiers boot and leg relative to the ski under certain circumstances.

Many skiers have long shown a preference for ski bindings in which astrap or long thong attached directly to the ski is wrapped around theskiers boot and ankle to hold down the heel of the boot firmly againstthe top of the ski. Direct attachment of the skiers boot in this mannerprovides excellent control of the skis but is almost certain to causeserious injury to the skier in the event of a heavy fall since in such acircumstance, the skis almost invariably act as levers applying strongtorsional stresses to the skiers legs. Consequently, use of such abinding is hazardous although common among expert skiers who are willingto forego safety to obtain the advantages of a secure heel attachment.It has long been recognized that novice and other less-than-expertskiers would use the long thong binding if it could be made safe. Theuse of a turntable under the heel of a skiers boot to permit the ski topivot with respect to the skiers leg has been suggested to eliminate thedangerous torsional stresses. As an additional safety factor, it hasbeen suggested that means be provided which automatically release theski from the boot in the event of a serious fall or other mishap. Anautomatically releasable, long thong heel binding including turntablemeans is described and claimed in my related copending United StatesPatent No. 3,272,524, issued Sept. 23, 1966.

Although the concept of using a turntable under the heel of a skiersboot has made is practicable for larger numbers of the skiers to employthe desired long thong bindings, the turntables of available bindingsleave room for improvement. Those in which the long thong harnessattachment means are permanently aifixed to the turntable have thedisadvantage that they are not adjustable to fit ski boots of varyingwidth. Therefore, when the width of the skiers boot is less than thedistance between the long thong harness attachment means on'oppositesides of the turntable, the boot is free to move laterally and controlof the ski is aifected adversely. Even the available heel bindings inwhich the long thongs are attached to laterally adjustable attachmentmeans are unsatisfactory in certain respects. For example, heelbin-dings have been provided in which the long thongs are attached tothe upstanding legs of laterally adjustable L-shaped tongues or cheekshaving their horizontal legs inserted between the turntable and the skibody or a stationary base plate. In the event of a fall the strongupward forces normally applied to the vertical legs of the tongues tendto cause the horizontal legs to bind against the ski or base plate thusinhibiting pivotal movement of the turntable at the very moment when itis required to prevent injury.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide anadjustable long thong heel binding having an improved turntablestructure adapted to pivot easily and dependably without binding underthe most stringent conditions of use to provide a secure but safe longthong attachment for the heel of a skiers boot.

The above and other objects of the invention are achieved by providing along thong heel binding including a novel turntable structure which willnow be described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary side elevational view of a ski equipped with anovel turntable structure of this invention associated with anautomatically releasable ski boot heel binding structure and anindependent boot toe retaining device;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the ski and ski bindings of FIG. 1, the heeland toe portions of the engage-d ski boot being shown in broken lines;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view showing on an enlarged scale the heel bindingof FIG. 2, including the improved turntable structure;

FIG. 4 is a horizontal cross sectional view taken on line 44 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a vertical cross sectional view further enlarged and taken onthe line 55 of FIG. 3; and

FIG. 6 is an exploded, perspective view showing some of the parts ofFIGS. 3 and 4.

Corresponding parts of the drawings are indicated by the same referencenumerals.

Referring to the drawings, a ski body 10 has a skiers boot 11 releasablyattached thereto, according to the invention of my related United Statespatent application referred to above, by means of boot toe bindingstructure 12, a separable boot heel binding structure 13, a bootengaging harness 14, an anchoring block 15 and a latching assembly 16.The boot harness 14 includes a strap or long thong 17 and a ring 18. Theseparable heel binding structure 13, which is releasable from the ski asa unit, includes a base plate 19, a leaf spring 20, a heel abutmentmember 21, and the novel turntable structure 22 of this invention whichcarries a pair of harness engaging tongues 23.

The novel turntable structure 22, which is pivotally mounted on the baseplate 19 by suitable pivot means 27, includes a bottom plate 53, havingan annular, downwardly projecting boss 54, and a top plate 55, alsohaving a downwardly projecting, annular boss 56. The boss 56 of topplate 55, which nests in the upper concave portion of boss 54 of bottomplate 53, provides an annular concave area in its upper surface toaccommodate the cap of the pivot means 27 so that the cap is flush withor below the upper surface of the top plate 55. Disposed between thebottom plate 53 and the top plate 55 are intermediate plates 57 and 59having outer curved edges 72. Intermediate plate 57 has a toothed inneredge 58 whereas intermediate plate 59 has a smooth inner edge 60. Thebottom plate 53, top plate 55 and intermediate plates 57 and 59 arefastened together in a unified structure by suitable means such asrivets 62 extending through the soles 61 in the plates.

L-shaped harness engaging tongues 23, having upstanding legs providedwith openings 28 to receive the long thong 17, and horizontal legs 63,are adjustably and removably mounted on the turntable structure 22 byinserting the horizontal legs 63 into the space between the top plate55, bottom plate 53 and the intermediate plates '57 and 59. Thehorizontal legs 63 of the tongues 23 are each provided on one side witha toothed edge 64 which is adapted to engage the toothed edge 58 of theinterme diate plate 57. The edges of the horizontal legs 63 opposite thetoothed edges 64 are smooth. It should be noted that the two long thongharness engaging tongues 23 constitute a pair; one being right-handedand the other left-handed with respect to its toothed edge 64.Consequently, one of the tongues is adapted to be inserted on one sideof the turntable and one on the other side, with both tongues having atoothed edge 64 engaging the toothed edge 58 of the plate 57. The innerends of the horizontal legs 63 of the tongues 23 are provided with holdthe toothed edge 64 of the leg 63 in interlocked engage-ment with thetoothed edge 58 of the plate 57 thus preventing withdrawal of the leg 63from the turntable structure. The locking pin 66 is provided with meansto prevent accidental withdrawal such as the bends 67 and 68, the latterbeing adapted to be inserted in, and releasably held by, notch 73 in theplate 59. The plate 59 is preferably provided with a notch 73 on eachside as shown in FIG. 6. This permits insertion of the locking pin 66into channel 65 from either side of the turntable structure andengagement of the bend 68 in the notch 7-3 on the opposite side of theplate 59. It will be apparent that the distance between the upstandinglegs of the tongues 23 on opposite sides of the turntable may be variedat will to accommodate ski boots of different widths by removing the pin66 to permit disengagement of the toothed edges 58 and 64, adjustment ofthe position of the legs 63 as desired, and locking of the legs in thenew position by reinsertion of the locking pin 66 into the channel 65.Any suitable means other than the toothed edges 58 and 64 and thelocking pin 66 may be employed to adjustably and removably engage thelegs 63 of the tongues 23 and lock them in the desired operable positionwith respect to the turntable structure 22.

It will be understood that the harness 14, being anchored to turntablestructure 22 by engagement with tongues 23, will, when exerting twistingpull upon the turntable, cause it to yield rotatably to sidewisemovement of the boot toe. Rotation of the turntable structure 22 aboutthe vertical axis of pivot 27 may be facilitated by providing guidemeans at the periphery of the turntable, e.g. at the forward end ofstructure 13, by guide plate 74 which overhangs an edge 70 of bottomplate 53, and at the rearward end of the structure, by the edge of base24 of heel abutment member 21 which similarly overhangs the oppositeedge 70 of the bottom plate. It will be seen, therefore, that when theturntable structure22 is in operable skiing position, the curved edges70 of the bottom plate 53 are closely confined below by the base plate19 and above by the lips of guide plate 74 and base 24 of the heelabutment member 21. The edges of guide plate Y74 and base 24 whichoverhang the bottom plate 53 have a concave arcuate configurationcomplementary to the convex arcuate configuration of the edges 71 and 72of plates 55 and 57 and thus act as guide means for these plates as wellas the bottom plate 53 upon rotation of the turntable. Friction betweenthe bottom plate 53 and the base plate 19 upon rotation of the turntable22 may be reduced by any suitable means. In the embodiment shown in thedrawings, this is accomplished by providing the bottom plate 53 withoptional downwardly projecting boss 54 which bears against the baseplate 53 as best shown in FIG. 4.

It will be seen that when strong forces are exerted upwardly on theupstanding legs of tongues 23 by the engaged long thong harness 14 aswould be the case in a heavy fall, the horizontal legs 63 of the tongues23 may be biased downward at their inner ends. However, downward bias ofthe inner ends of the legs 63 cannot cause binding or in anyway inhibitpivotal movement of the turntable, as would be the case with certainpreviously pendably pivotable under the most stringent conditions ofuse. It is apparent, therefore, that the novel turntable structure 22makes practicable a heel binding combining the advantages of a securelong thong attachment with the additional advantage of safety due to theelimination of torsional stresses on a skiers leg in the event of aheavy fall.

The novel turntable structure described above may be mounted on a skieither permanently or releasab-ly in any suitable manner, it beingpreferred, however, to incorporate it in an automatically releasable andseparable boot heel attachment means such as that illustrated in thedrawings and described and claimed inmy copending United States patentapplication referred to above. Briefly, such an automaticallyreleasable, long thong heel binding includes a separable boot heelbin-ding structure 13, a long thong boot engaging harness 14, ananchoring block 15 and a latching assembly 16. The separable heelbinding structure 13 includes the novel turntable structure 22 of thisinvention, a base plate 19, tongues 23, harness 14, heel abutment member21 and an upstanding, transversely arcuate abutment portion at the rearwhich is adapted to receive the heel of the skiers boot and preventrearward displacement of the boot relative to the base plate 19. Thebase 24 of heel abutment member 21 is positioned above an optionalspacing plate 25, the forward end of the leaf spring 20 and the rear endof the base plate 19. The sandwich formed in this way is permanentlyunited by suitable fastening means such as screws or rivets 26.

The forward edge of the base plate 19 is provided with a pair ofupwardly extending lugs 29 disposed at the sides of the base plate andan upwardly extending intermediate lug 30. The leaf spring 20 isprovided with a small hole 31 to accommodate the spike of a ski pole andterminates at its rear end in an upwardly extending flange T heanchoring block 15 is permanently mounted transversely on the ski body10 by means of screws 33 or other suitable fastening means and isprovided at its rear edge with a pair of raised shoulders 34 and anintermediate notch 35; recesses 36 being formed in this way between theshoulders 34 and the ski body 10.

The spring'retaining latch assembly 16 includes a latch base 37 providedwith a pivot pin 39 which projects vertically upward. The latch base 37,which is permanently fastened to the 'ski body 10 by means of screws 43or other suitable means, has an opening 44 in its forward edge. A springlatch lever 46 is pivotally mounted on the latch base by means of pivotpin 39. A cap 48 is fastened to the upper end of the pivot pin 39 byscrew threads or other suitable means to retain the latch lever 46 whichis free to pivot under manual pressure through an arc of somewhat lessthan as shown in FIG. 2. The latch lever 46 is preferably provided witha detent or catch, not shown, which yieldably resists pivotal movementof latch lever 46 away from the central position shown in full lines inFIG. 2. The latch lever 46 may optionally be provided with an upwardlyextending flange 50 to facilitate manual operation. The forward end 51of latch lever 46 is offset upwardly as shown to provide a recess 52 toaccommodate flange 32 of leaf spring 20. The separable heel bindingstructure 13 is operably and releasably connected to the ski body 10 byfirst sliding the forward end of the base plate 19 into withdrawableengagement withanchoring block 15 whereby the lugs 29 engage shoulders34 and the lug 30 projects upwardly through the notch 35 between theshoulders 34 thus preventing sidewi'se movement of the forward end ofthe base plate 19 and structure 13. The leaf spring 20, which whenuntensioned has an upwardly curved configuration, is then tensioned byapplying a downward force on its upwardly curved free end, e.g. by meansof a ski pole spike inserted in the hole 31 provided for that purpose.As the leaf spring 20 is forced downwardly, the latch lever 46 ispivoted manually to one side, as shown in broken lines in FIG. 2, touncover the opening 44 in the forward edge of the latch base 37 intowhich opening the free end of the leaf spring 20 is forced. The latchlever 46 is then manually pivoted back to the central position, shown infull lines in FIG. 2, and the leaf spring 20 is released from thedownward force, whereby the tension in the leaf spring 20 forces theflange 32 at its free end into contact with the under side of the end 51of latch lever 46. The tension in, and extended length of, the leafspring 20 also forces the forward edge of the base plate 19 against theanchoring block thus holding the separable heel binding structure 13 intight but resilient and releasable contact with the ski body 10.

For cooperation with the above described boot heel releasable attachmentmeans, or with the novel turntable structure of this invention alone ifthe latter is mounted on the ski in some other suitable manner, the skibody 10 should preferably be provided with means to engage and hold thetoe of boot 11 against the ski body subject to release and withdrawalwhen the heel portion of the boot is pivoted or released. Such boot toeengaging means may be of any suitable form and construction which isadapted to function in the manner specified.

A desirable releasable boot toe attachment means is disclosed in detailin my prior United States Letters Patent No. 2,616,714, granted Nov. 4,1952. Again referring to the drawings, such a boot toe attachment meansgenerally comprises a toe plate 77 which is affixed to the boot sole atthe toe, said toe plate having a forwardly projecting portion which isindented by a seating notch 78, and a holding means which is cooperativewith said toe plate. Said holding means comprises a latching stud 79 anda spring actuated thrust means 80, with a pivotal joint 81 connectingsaid latching stud and thrust means in end to end relation. Said partsare supported by upstanding end plates 82 and 83 of base 84, the latterbeing secured to the ski body 10 by the screws 85 or other suitablefastening means. The rear free end of the latching stud 79 engages inthe seating notch 78 of the toe plate 77. The latching stud 79 isprovided with a radially extending fulcrum flange 86 adapted to normallybear flatly against a face of the end plate 83 of the fixed base 84under the pressure of the spring actuated thrust means 80. Peripheralportions of the fulcrum flange 86 provide fulcrum points about which thelatching stud 79 can pivot relative to said end plate 83, which saidlatching stud is subjected to transversely applied or uplifting forcesufficient to overpower the counterforce of the thrust means 80, therebyto disengage the latching stud 79 from the seating notch 78 of the boottoe plate 77, with boot toe releasing effect, all as more particularlyset forth in my aforesaid prior Patent No. 2,616,714.

It will be understood that the latch assembly 16, which normally holdsdown the end flange 32 of leaf spring 20, inhibits sidewise movement ofthe spring and attached heel binding structure by confining the end ofthe leaf spring in the opening 44 in latch base 37. The tension in theleaf spring and the restraint of the latch lever 46 also resist anydisplacement of the separable heel binding structure 13 from its bootattaching relation to the ski body 10 due to normal upward pullingstresses or strains to which the ski is subjected in use. In the eventof a fall or other occurrence which induces an abnormal upward pullingstress or strain, tending to separate the structure 13 and boot 11 fromattached relation to the ski body, said leaf spring 29 will yield so asto disengage the flange 32, releasing the spring and separate heelbinding structure 13 from attachment to the ski body. Lesser shocks orstrains, however, may merely cause the leaf spring to bow and permit theskiers boot heel to lift from the ski body without releasing theseparable heel binding structure 13, thus providing a resilient bindingbetween the ski boot and ski.

When the separable heel binding structure 13 and boot 11 are releasedfrom the holding effect of the latching means 16, the structure 13 tendsto move rearwardly, withdrawing its forward edge and lugs 29 and 30 fromthe recesses 36 of the anchoring block 15, thereby fully detaching theseparable heel binding structure 13 and boot 11 from the ski body 10.

As the separable heel binding structure 13, and consequently boot 11which is tied thereto by the long thong harness 14, is separated fromthe ski body as described above, it will be obvious that the toe of theboot 11 will free itself from the forward boot toe binding means 12, andconsequently the skiers boot will be entirely detached and separatedfrom the ski.

It will be apparent from the above discussion that coupling of the skito the users boot by means of the described device in conjunction withthe novel turntable structure of the invention, permits use of a strapor long thong harness in connection with the boot and leg of the skier,which use is so frequently desired by skiers, while neverthelessproviding the additional safety factor of quick and automatic separationand detachment of the skiers boot from the ski in the event of a fall orother mishap.

The specific embodiments of the invention described above are given byway of illustration and are not to be construed as limiting the scope ofthe invention defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a long thong ski binding for attaching the heel of a skiers bootto a ski, a turntable structure comprising a bottom plate, a top plateand a pair of intermediate plates, all of said plates being fastenedtogether in a unified structure, a channel between said bottom plate andsaid top plate having an opening on each of two opposite sides of saidturntable structure and being further defined by the inner edges of saidintermediate plates, means for pivotally mounting said turntablestructure above a ski, a pair of tongues, each having an upstanding legadapted to engage a long t-hong for tying a skiers boot thereto and ahorizontal leg, said tongues being mounted on opposite sides of saidturntable structure by insertion of the horizontal leg thereof in one ofthe openings of said channel, the position of said tongues relative toeach other being adjustable by moving the horizontal legs thereof backand forth in said channel whereby the distance between the upstandinglegs of said tongues on opposite sides of said turntable structure canbe varied to accommodate therebetween ski boots of varying widths, andmeans for removably locking the horizontal legs of said tongues in saidchannel in a desired position, said turntable structure beingcharacterized by being easily and dependably pivotable without bindingwhen strong lifting forces are applied to said upstanding leg therebycausing the horizontal legs of said tongues to be biased downwardagainst the bottom plate of said turntable structure.

2. In a long thong ski binding for attaching the heel of a skiers bootto a ski, a turntable structure comprising a bottom plate, a top plateand a pair of intermediate plates, all of said plates being fastenedtogether in a unified structure, a channel between said bottom plate andsaid top plate having an opening on each of two opposite sides of saidturntable structure and being further defined by the inner edges of saidintermediate plates, means for pivotally mounting said turntablestructure above a ski, a pair of tongues each having an upstanding legadapted to engage a long thong for tying a skiers boot thereto and ahorizontal leg, said tongues being mounted on opposite sides of saidturntable structure by insertion of the horizontal leg thereof in one ofthe openings of said channel, the position of said tongues relative toeach other being adjustable by moving the horizontal legs thereof backand forth in said channel whereby the distance between the upstandinglegs of said tongues on opposite sides of said turntable structure canbe varied to accommodate therebetween ski boots of varying widths,

means for removably locking the horizontal legs of said tongues insaidchannel in a desired position, and means adapted to be mounted abovea ski forwardly and rearwardly of said turntable structure adjacent tothe periphery thereof to guide said turntable structure during pivotalmovement, said turntable structure being characterized by being easilyand dependably pivotable without binding when strong lifting forces areapplied to said upstanding legs thereby causing the horizontal legs ofsaid tongues to be biased downward against the bottom plate of saidturntable structure.

3. In a long thong ski binding for attaching the heel of a skiers bootto a ski, a turntable structure comprising a bottom plate, a top plateand a pair of intermediate plates, all of said plates being fastenedtogether in a unified structure, a channel between said bottom plate andsaid top plate having an opening on each of two opposite sides of saidturntable structure and being further defined by the smooth inner edgeof one of said intermediate plates and the inner-edge, provided with aplurality of teeth of the other intermediate plate, means for pivotallymounting said turntable structure above a ski, a pair of tongues, eachhaving an upstanding leg adapted to engage a long thong for tying askiers boot thereto and a horizontal leg, one edge of said horizontalleg being smooth and the opposite edge being provided with a pluralityof teeth, said tongues being mounted on opposite sides of said turntablestructure by insertion of the horizontal leg thereof in one of theopenings of said channel, the position of said tongues relative to eachother being adjustable by moving the horizontal legs thereof back andforth in said channel whereby the distance between the upstanding legsof said tongues on opposite sides of said turntable structure can bevaried to accommodate therebetween ski boots of varying widths, and alocking pin adapted to be inserted in said channel between the smoothedges of said horizontal legs and the smooth edge of said intermediateplate, said locking pin acting to force the teeth of the horizontal legsof said tongues into engagement with the teeth of the inner edge of saidintermediate plate thereby removably locking the horizontal legs of saidtongues in said channel in a desired position, said turntable structurebeing characterized by being easily and dependably pivotable withoutbinding when strong lifting forces are applied to said upstanding legsthereby causing the horizontal legs of said tongues to be biaseddownward against the bottom plate of said turntable structure.

4. In a long thong ski binding for attaching the heel of a skiers bootto a ski, a turntable structure comprising a bottom plate, a top plateand a pair of intermediate plates, all of said plates having twoopposite arcuate ends and being fastened together in superimposedrelation in a unified structure with the arcuate ends of said top plateand said intermediate plates in register and the arcuate ends of saidbottom plate extending beyond the said registeredarcuate end to providea lip at each of two opposite ends of said turntable structure, achannel between said bottom plate and said top plate having an openingon each of two opposite sides of said turntable structure and beingfurther defined by the inner edges of said intermediate plates, one ofsaid intermediate plates having a smooth inner edge and the otherintermediate plate having an inner edge provided with a plurality ofteeth, means for pivotally mounting said turntable structure above aski, a pair of tongues, each having an upstanding leg adapted to engagea long thong for tying a skiers boot thereto and a horizontal leg, oneedge of said horizontal leg being smooth and the opposite edge beingprovided with a plurality of teeth, said tongues being mounted onopposite sides of said turntable structure by insertion of thehorizontal leg thereof in one of the openings of said channel, theposition of said tongues relative to each other being adjustable bymoving the horizontal legs thereof back and forth in said channelwhereby the distance between theupstanding legs of said tongues onopposite sides of said turntable structure can be varied to accommodatetherebetween ski boots of varying widths, a locking pin adapted to beremovably inserted in said channel between the smooth edges of saidhorizontal legs and the smooth edge of said intermediate plate, saidlocking pin acting to force the teeth of the horizontal legs of saidtongues into engagement with the teeth of the inner edge of saidintermediate plate thereby removably locking the horizontallegs of saidtongues in said channel in a desired position, and arcuate means adaptedto be mounted above a ski forwardly and rearwardly of said turntablestructure adjacent the periphery thereof to guide the arcuate edges ofsaid top plate and intermediate plates and to overhang the lip portionof said bottom plate at each end of said turntable structure, wherebypivotal movement of said'turntable structure is facilitated, saidturntable structure being characterized by being easily and dependablypivotable without binding when strong lifting forces are applied to saidupstanding'legs thereby causing the horizontal legs of said tongues tobe biased downward against the bottom plate of said turntable structure.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,836,428 5/1958 Marker.

3,079,163 2/ 1963 De Beausacq. 3,216,737 11/1965 Iverson et al.

FOREIGN PATENTS 1,325,216 3/1963 France. 1,355,083 2/1964 France.

360,933 4/ 1962 Switzerland.

BENJAMIN HERSH, Primary Examiner.

MILTON L. SMITH, Examiner.

1. IN A LONG THONG SKI BINDING FOR ATTACHING THE HEEL OF A SKIER''S BOOTTO A SKI, A TURNTABLE STRUCTURE COMPRISING A BOTTOM PLATE, TOP PLATE ANDA PAIR OF INTERMEDIATE PLATES, ALL OF SAID PLATES BEING FASTENEDTOGETHER IN A UNIFIED STRUCTURE, A CHANNEL BETWEEN SAID BOTTOM PLATE ANDSAID TOP PLATE HAVING AN OPENING ON EACH OF TWO OPPOSITE SIDES OF SAIDTURNTABLE STRUCTURE AND BEING FURTHER DEFINED BY THE INNER EDGES OF SAIDINTERMEDIATE PLATES, MEANS FOR PIVOTALLY MOUNTING SAID TURNTABLESTRUCTURE ABOVE A SKI, A PAIR OF TONGUES, EACH HAVING AN UPSTANDING LEGADAPTED TO ENGAGE A LONG THONG FOR TYING A SKIER''S BOOT THERETO AND AHORIZONTAL LEG, SAID TONGUES BEING MOUNTED ON OPPOSITE SIDES OF SAIDTURNTABLE STRUCTURE BY INSERTION OF THE HORIZONTAL LEG THEREOF IN ONE OFTHE OPENINGS OF SAID CHANNEL, THE POSITION OF SAID TONGUES RELATIVE TOEACH OTHER BEING ADJUSTABLE BY MOVING THE HORIZONTAL LEGS